St. Ann makes plans to push academics even higher

Students at St. Ann School in Nashville rush past a statue of Sts. Ann and Mary in the school hallway on their way to class in this file photo. St. Ann is working to strengthen its academics for the 2017-2018 school year. Next school year, St. Ann will also be launching a new program for students for intellectual disabilities, similar to the Hand in Hand program at Pope John Paul II High School. Tennessee Register file photo by Rick Musacchio

St. Ann School has just finished the 2016-17 school year, but Principal Adelaide Nicholson and her faculty are already working on improving the academic performance of their students next year.

The focus over the summer and into the new school year will be a stronger emphasis on teaching critical thinking skills across the curriculum, Nicholson said. “That improves students’ performance all the way around,” she said. “That’s been proven.”

After students discuss the subject content in class, they will have to write about what they’ve learned or discuss it in a debate format, Nicholson explained. That will help students develop a deeper understanding of the material, she said, which will also show up on improved scores on the standardized tests St. Ann students take each year.

“When you have to write about it, that’s a whole different process,” Nicholson said. “When you go beyond a matching and multiple choice (test), you’re having those children think. You have to think, it’s not a guessing game.”

In recent years, St. Ann has improved its science curriculum and last year added an advanced math class. For the coming year, the school will add an advanced writing class. “That was an area all the teachers wanted to focus on,” Nicholson said.

With its smaller class sizes, typically fewer than 20 students per class, it is easier for St. Ann teachers to tailor their teaching methods to the individual strengths and weaknesses of each student, Nicholson said.

“We evaluate the data (from the standardized test scores), look for the strengths of the children, look at areas that have improved or need improvement, and look at the child’s individual learning styles,” Nicholson said.

“For some kids, a written assessment is not the best tool for them. You have to know your students. You have to know your students in depth to figure out what works for this child,” Nicholson said.

“By understanding the child as a whole that creates more trust in the student-teacher relationship and the parent-teacher relationship,” she added.

While the school will be working hard to push its academics forward, the faculty and staff also will be looking at ways to improve students’ social skills and increase their empathy for others, Nicholson said.

The school will unveil a new discipline program, Eagle Strong, Nicholson said. “It’s all about accountability … doing the right thing.

“Children need to learn from their mistakes and empathize with others,” she said. “Eagle Strong gives them more ownership and empathy for others.”

“By doing this it provides a solid foundation for spiritual, mental and physical nourishment for all of our students and it cultivates a loving, faithful and caring environment, which is our school,” Nicholson said.

In the fall, that loving and caring environment will include students with intellectual disabilities. St. Ann is launching a new program for students with intellectual disabilities, based on the Hand in Hand program at Pope John Paul II High School, that Nicholson hopes will serve as a pilot program for other elementary schools in the diocese.

The program will have three students in the fall. They will meet in a separate class for some subjects and be included with the rest of the student body in other areas where it is appropriate, Nicholson said.

“Hand in Hand will further enhance our empathy toward others,” Nicholson said. “We want them to have that empathy for others.”

Nicholson is confident the school can continue its push to improve academics for all students while also welcoming the three students with intellectual disabilities.

The faculty at St. Ann have already been preparing for the changes in the curriculum, Nicholson said. For teachers, including critical thinking opportunities in their lessons is a learning process, she said. Once teachers complete that process, she said, “it’s really a whole lot easier to assess students, and it improves academics across the board.”

St. Ann, located on Charlotte Avenue, is in the middle of a revitalizing neighborhood that is attracting many families with young children, Nicholson said. She is hoping the academic and other improvements will put St. Ann in a strong position to grow its enrollment in the future.

The school took an important step in that direction last year when it added a pre-kindergarten program. “That was very successful,” she said. “The pre-K took off like gangbusters,” and the class, which is capped at 20 students, already has 19 students enrolled for the fall.

The pre-kindergarten program helped St. Ann push its enrollment to 145 students last year, and Nicholson is shooting for an enrollment of 150 to 155 next year.

The fifth grade and eighth grade classes are full for next year, but there are several spots open in the other grades, particularly in the kindergarten through fourth grade classes, Nicholson said.

For more information about St. Ann School or to schedule a tour, call the school office at 615-269-0568.